Some local veterans believe the vandalism of a food truck constitutes a hate crime.

The food truck in Winthrop is owned by a veteran and was defaced with hateful words.

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Tina Bowden showed up at the lunch van to set things up on Thursday morning and noticed a power cord had been pulled. Hundreds of dollars' worth of food in a freezer was spoiled, but it was what she found on the front of the van that was most disturbing.

"It said, 'F veterans, you die' in feces," Bowden said.

Bowden is an auxiliary president for the local American Legion. She said she was stunned, saddened and shocked.

"What they used to write it with is very sick," Bowden said.

Bowden was asked what went through her mind.

"A lot of hurt and scared, scared to think there's people out here that would do that. I cried. It's the veterans, so they're my family, all of them. It's like having a family member abused to me," Bowden said.

Bowden said they had to use special chemicals to clean up the mess before they opened for business.

"Downright dirty thing to do, because they're trying to make money here to give to the veterans," Vietnam War veteran Arthur Wells said.

Wells ordered an item for lunch that wasn't on the menu, but the item was made anyway. He and others stopped by to tell the ladies that they're sorry about what happened.

A security camera across the street only captured traffic. No vandals were seen, but Bowden said she has full confidence in the police.

"Someone is going to brag about it, and it is, it's a very small town, and they're going to get caught. It may take some time, but they will get caught," Bowden said.

Bowden said she has ideas about what kind of punishment should be handed down.

"I think they should do some community type (service) for veterans," Bowden said.

Four new security cameras were donated by a local business as police continue to investigate the case.